Strip-type webs may comprise lengthwise in panel positions a plurality of panel fields which have the same or differing linear extensions and are stringed together in one part. The strip is e.g. a support strip of plastics material, such as polyester, paper or the like of constant thickness and extends in one part full-length over all panel fields. In each panel field the support web is provided only on part of the aeral field extension with a protruding layer or coating on one side only, or on both sides. The layer is constant in thickness and/or the layer is a protruding function/control member. The thickness of the translucent to transparent support web is less than a tenth or five hundredths of a millimeter. Compared thereto the thickness of the layer is smaller and that of the function member is greater.
The support film or foil is electrically insulating. The layer is electrically conducting and made of a metal such as copper or aluminum. The function member is an electronic memory chip having a side length of less than 10 mm or 5 mm. The terminals of this member are electrically conductively connected to separate counter contacts of the layer. The layer constitutes for the silicon chip or integrated circuit an antenna which receives and/or transmits RF signals. The signals are utilized by the electric circuit of the unit as small electric currents for contactless reading or writing digitized data from or into the electronic memory. The transponder unit can be without an electric battery or capacitor or it may comprise such function units in a lowprofile arrangement in the scope of the cited thickness. Transponder units find application in the field of electronic item security, origin marking and the like. The transponder units are suitable as a coating component or intermediate layer in other marking or authorization items such as air travel tickets, baggage tags, security documents, package labels, chip cards or the like. The coating is deposited by evaporating. The circuit configuration is etched photochemically or printed. Thereafter the memory or Silicon chip is fixed so that its terminals are connected to the antenna connectors.
Such a web may repeatedly include unwanted panel fields or second sections, namely defective transponder units which are not readable or writeable upon and thus are unsuitable for further processing. Thus there is a need to exclude such sections or defects from the panel position within the web before the web or panel fields are incorporated in a laminate, such as sticker material, or in substrates such as paper or plastics laminates to produce the finished product. The latter is then a rolled up or zig-zag piled web, such as a label web, a sticker web or a paper laminate. The finished product may also be single sheets each including at least one transponder unit or the like. It is conceivable to detect the unwanted sections not before the product is finished and to reject them. Preferably these sections are withdrawn prior to being incorporated in the finished product, namely rejected from the web so that it contains only the desired first sections as panel fields with no unwanted sections. Such a "cleaned" web may then be processed by machining or fully automatically for producing the finished product without containing these unwanted sections.